In Louisville, Betsy DeVos says remote learning 'for months and months' has hurt students

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said Monday that remote learning "for months and months and months is not the right answer for so many kids" during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Instead, DeVos said "a lot of money" from the federal coronavirus relief package passed in March remains on the table to assist schools with resuming in-person classes.

DeVos made the remarks following a school choice roundtable at Midwest Church of Christ in west Louisville's California neighborhood.

"What I do know is that kids benefit from being in school in person and that in every case possible, schools should be having that as an important and primary option," DeVos told reporters. "We know that for a variety of health measures, that's the right thing for kids."

The Kentucky Pastors in Action Coalition, a group of local religious leaders that previously called for a state takeover of Jefferson County Public Schools, hosted the talk, which had over a dozen participants who expressed support for charter schools.

Among those also in attendance Monday were Jim Waters, president and CEO of the conservative Bluegrass Institute for Public Policy Solutions, and three former Kentucky Board of Education members who served under former Republican Gov. Matt Bevin: Gary Houchens, Milton Seymore and Kathy Gornik.

Read more:JCPS is building new schools at its highest rate in decades 

DeVos repeatedly brought up something she also encouraged during a visit last year to Kentucky — the creation of charter schools and private tax credit scholarships, also mentioning President Donald Trump's support for "empowering parents with school choice."

Kentucky has no charter schools, which DeVos said is because "politicians here haven't taken action on actually funding them."

But DeVos received applause when she announced Monday the federal government has determined "prohibiting religiously affiliated charter schools is unconstitutional."

The publicly funded but privately operated schools are touted by many Republicans as an option for needy families to escape failing schools, while public school educators and teachers unions around the country have derided them and used teacher strikes to express their belief in how charter schools siphon funds away from traditional districts.

Several roundtable participants, a majority of whom were Black, took aim at JCPS for low achievement rates among disadvantaged students, especially Black youth from Louisville's West End.

Pastor Derek Wilson, who founded the Spirit of Love Center in Shawnee with his wife, Claressa Wilson, said JCPS has a "monopoly" on the local education system and is responsible for many of the "tragedies that are occurring in our community."

Expanding charter schools will continue to be a "primary K-12 focus" for the federal government if Trump is given four more years in the White House, DeVos said.

Earlier:Pollio has faith JCPS will resume in-person classes during school year

Creating more career, technical and apprenticeship opportunities for students would be another goal, DeVos added.

She also said that she and the president "feel that it is absolutely critical that students and families have the option of in-person learning and that they also have the option for distance learning if that's the right answer for their children."

JCPS, which is Kentucky's largest district with almost 100,000 students, has held only virtual classes since March, with leaders citing continuing concerns over the number of new daily cases in Jefferson County.

A majority of the Bluegrass State's 171 school districts have resumed some in-person classes and also offered virtual options this fall.

But at least two dozen districts in Kentucky have recently paused in-person instruction because of new COVID-19 cases among students, staff and local residents.

DeVos said that "we know today that there are so many disadvantaged kids who are not getting the kinds of education and the kind of attention that they need and that they deserve."

The Trump administration, DeVos said, will continue to advocate that they "all have the option of going back to school in person and clearly with the caveat that if there is a real spike in coronavirus cases, that the school has a plan for addressing that and dealing with that."

"But this notion that schools just stay closed down and only offer distance learning for months and months and months is not the answer for so many kids," DeVos said. "And my heart breaks for them."

Resources:JCPS and Humana team up to offer in-person services for families

Trump has repeatedly urged schools to reopen during the pandemic, at one point even threatening to withhold federal aid from schools that did not resume in-person classes.

Proponents of reopening K-12 schools have pointed to recent studies that found no consistent relationship between in-person classes and the spread of the coronavirus.

Trump's Democratic opponent, former Vice President Joe Biden, has called for additional funding first to help schools safely reopen, as well as clear national guidelines to help officials with reopening decisions.

DeVos said Monday that K-12 schools received over $13 billion from the federal Coronavirus, Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES ACT, that Congress passed in March.

Attempts at passing another round of federal relief funding have stalled, but DeVos said less than 12% of the CARES Act money given to states to help schools has "actually been drawn down at the local level."

Kentucky Department of Education spokeswoman Toni Konz Tatman told The Courier Journal that as of Oct. 20, the department had reimbursed districts for about 14% of the CARES Act money the state received through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund and about 31% of the money received through the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Fund.

"Many districts are using the money to purchase technology, and the devices have not come in yet," Konz Tatman said. "In addition, there is a lot of uncertainty on how long our districts will be dealing with the virus. We are confident that our local school leaders will use these much-appreciated federal dollars to help offset the unexpected costs of the pandemic in a time and way that is best for their individual students and their community."

DeVos said state and local governments should take advantage of the CARES Act funding rather than wait for more relief from Congress.

"So there's a lot of resources there yet," DeVos said. "And we have continued to advocate to ensure that schools have the resources they need."

Reach Billy Kobin at bkobin@courierjournal.com.